At a glance (2 minute read)

• Scammers will impersonate clients, suppliers and colleagues in order to gain the trust of potential victims.
• Verifying the identity of someone who's trying to contact you can help you avoid getting scammed.    

REALTORS® from across your Board's areas are reporting an increasing number of cyber criminals disguising themselves as potential clients and using leads to try to scam members.

During markets like today's when business is slow, the temptation to respond as quickly as possible to a potential client can be overwhelming.

Cyber criminals rely on this temptation. Here are a few examples of how they scam and harass their victims.

A BEC attack is when a scammer impersonates a business, supplier, or prospect to trick people into providing useful information about their organization. They then use this information to scam money from the business and their employees. For example, a list of employees can give the cyber criminal ammunition to help them with scams like the recent gift card scam that was targeting REALTORS®.

Malicious links can install software on your device that'll give cyber criminals access to your personal information. Many scammers impersonate others to send these links to their victims. For example, a scammer could impersonate a potential client and attach Qakbot malware disguised as an image of a home they’re looking to purchase in an email to their potential victim.

Gaining access to a legitimate social media account gives a scammer access to a pool of trusting targets. Scammers can impersonate colleagues, managers, and even businesses when trying to trick people into giving up their login credentials. In a recent case, a member was contacted by a scammer impersonating a colleague claiming they were locked out of their social media account. They asked the member to click an account recovery link in a text message. This malicious link then gave the scammer access to the member’s social media account. 

Verifying a contact’s identity is difficult. While none of these methods are foolproof, they can help you make the right decision about whether to engage a potential client. 

• Start with a Google search and include the area they claim they’re from (e.g., Tina Smith Vancouver BC).  
• Look for a social media profile. Is it active? Does it look like a real person? 
• Some scammers will steal photos to use in their social media profiles. If the person has a selfie on their social media profile, do a reverse image search by going to Google Image search, and clicking on the camera icon in the search bar. If the image is on a stock image site, or if it’s used in multiple profiles, it’s likely stolen and being used by a scam artist. 
• Try to meet the potential client via video chat. Be aware criminals may use video chat to harass their victims, so only connect this way if you see no other red flags. 
• If there are no obvious red flags, you may want to meet them in person before discussing any details about yourself or your business. Meet in a public place like a coffee shop, take down their details, and verify their identity in person. 
• Above all else, trust your gut. If something feels off about the interaction, it probably is!